The Future of Open Source


What makes open source rather uniquely western is its dependence on certain cultural and legal abstractions. Apart from free speech and a rule of law of unprecedented rigor, there is for example a very western notion of privacy that in some ways runs counter to the interests of an empire, and a fairly modern notion of individuality and personal realization. Ideas such as l'art pour l'art and the long march through the institutions have surely played their part as well.
A short explanation might be in order: I'd like to think I'm not overly naïve. There are several examples of corruption, mismanagement and even tyranny carried out by and in the west - but as far as open source goes, I have a hard time placing it in another political framing. As such, I do believe it's the nominal values of the empire that's enabled it. It's an implementation of ideals the imperial elite may have paid mere lip service to and that may have resulted in tyranny in some of its client states, but which has at least earnestly (and perhaps sometimes foolishly) been shared by the citizens at its core. At risk of sounding pompous, it's an echo of grand founding phrases, even though they in our current trying times can feel like hollow mockeries: Liberty, equality, fraternity. All public power emanates from the people. Life, liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
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